‘I could have signed’: Midfielder who won Player of the Year at Everton says he nearly joined Liverpool

It was a long time ago now, but, at one point, Everton were the dominant force on Merseyside.

Indeed, in the mid-1980s, the balance of power in Liverpool was different as Everton were the perennial top side ahead of their red neighbours.

Everton had some incredible players during that period such as Gary Lineker, Trevor Steven and Kevin Sheedy.

However, perhaps Everton’s greatest player in that period was Peter Reid.

The midfielder won the PFA Player of the Year award in 1985, but things could’ve turned out very differently.

Indeed, speaking on the Royal Blue Podcast, Reid has claimed that he actually could’ve signed for Liverpool as a youngster, but he opted to go to Bolton Wanderers instead as he thought he had a better chance of getting in the team.

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Peter Reid could’ve joined Liverpool

Reid spoke about his options when he was getting into football.

The midfielder says he was offered terms at Liverpool as a kid, but he decided to head to Bolton instead.

Ultimately, Reid would end up joining Everton and becoming a legend at Goodison Park.

“As a kid, I got offered terms at Everton and Liverpool. But I thought, I’d watch, what was the game? There was a game here on Granada,” Peter Reid said.

“And I watched Bolton and there was a lot of kids in the side. So I thought, I got more chance of getting in the side then.

“You know what I mean? And funny enough, when I went to Bolton, I like to say, near what was Big Sam, Sam Allardyce was an apprentice. But yeah, I could have signed for Liverpool and Everton as a kid, but decided to get away and try and do it through Bolton Wanderers.”

Peter Reid record against Liverpool

Reid ended up joining Everton and having untold success as a Toffee.

Indeed, Reid won numerous trophies with Everton, but one thing he always struggled with at Goodison Park was playing against Liverpool.

The midfielder had a poor record against Liverpool during his playing career, winning less than a third of his games against the Reds.

Things would get even worse for Reid on that front when he went into management too.

Reid is an Everton great, but his record against Liverpool leaves a lot to be desired.

In another world, Reid could’ve become a legend at Liverpool instead.